Loss of casino money could mean Falls tax increase

Mayor Paul Dyster has proposed a 2018 budget that raises taxes to make up for the loss of casino funding. The budget must still be approved by the City Council.

A dispute between the state and Seneca Niagara Casino means about $12 million in cash flow to the city is in jeopardy. Dyster presented a budget that does not include casino fund revenues.

His proposed $96 million budget proposes an increase of $2.3 million in the tax levy, which would rise from $29.1 million to $31.4 million. A majority the increase would be shouldered by businesses.

In the city’s two-tier system, homeowners would see a proposed rise of 2.6 percent, or about $46 per year in an average $100,000 home, while the rate for a businesses, which already are taxed at a higher rate, would rise 14 percent, which is nearly $500, per every $100,000 of valuation.